Month: July 2018

True Market Value of a Home

Every seller wants to sell their home for the best possible price – and as quickly as possible. To accomplish this requires taking a certain approach to the home sales process that many owners are unaware of. Getting the fair market value of your home starts with picking a real estate agent you can trust.

In real estate terms, the “market value” of a home is the most probable price that it will sell for, based on local housing market conditions and recent sales activity.  In the simplest sense, whatever someone is willing to pay for it is the true market value.

When searched online, you may find many estimates of your home that have been automatically generated based on public information like tax records, sales history, and comparable sales. Problem is, your home’s features and condition are not part of that equation. Every home and lot is unique, so having a real estate agent to help you select the most like-kind comps and add or subtract value based on differences in condition, updates, size and more.

A skilled Realtor will give you comparable properties with the same footage, same style of home, the similar number of bedrooms and bathrooms, located in the same area as your home and similar upgrades or updates.  A basic formula used: Comparable sales prices + value adding features = a good asking price

The Bottom Line:  Pricing your home too high and you may end up missing out on the buyers willing to pay the fair market value of your home, which results in reducing the price after 60 days. The buyers have usually moved on at that point or see your home as “unwanted” due to the long days on the market coupled with the price reductions. You may find your self “chasing the market down” – a term used when a home gets no offers (or too low offers) and continues to reduce the price to catch up with the market.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Adding Value to Your Home

Want to increase the value of your home?  This can be done on the inside or the outside, from do-it-yourself for the smaller projects to hiring a contractor for the larger jobs. You can give your home a facelift a little at a time. Most homeowners don’t have the finances for a complete overhaul done all at once. To most people, their home is their largest investment and they would like to keep it in prime condition. Although the price of your home is mostly determined by the current market conditions, there are several things you can do to maximize the value of your home.

1. Decorative moldings can be used throughout the home to trim doors, floors, walls, windows, fireplaces, and ceilings. These moldings can be found at practically all home improvement stores and are fairly easy to install to enhance the look of any room.

2. An updated kitchen is what most potential buyers really want in their new home. Replacing the cabinets and countertops can be done gradually. You may also get creative and improve the old cabinets by painting them and then replacing knobs or handles.

3. Vinyl windows are a great way to increase the value of any house. These windows function better than the old wooden windows by opening for easy cleaning and they conserve more energy in the months when heat or central air will be used the most. They do not require painting and they can really make a house look beautiful.

4. Adding a new roof can make a very strong impression. The roof is the first thing people see and this can play a strong role in how much your house will sell for. A new sturdy roof provides protection from leaks that make ugly stains on the ceilings in your house that can lead to more damage.

5. Installing vinyl siding can add up to $10,000 to the value of your house. If you have fairly decent vinyl siding already, hire a power wash company to clean the siding and give your house a fresh new look.

6. Painting the interior rooms of your home can transform any house with a few coats of paint. You can be as colorful and creative as you like and you can take your time doing so, one room at a time.

7. Flooring absolutely makes the difference in any room. Whether you use linoleum, tile, wood or carpet, a new floor can make all the difference.

8. Adding new appliances such as a refrigerator, stove, dishwasher, washer, and dryer can greatly improve the value of your home. Along with adding a new water heater, furnace, and central air unit.

9. Exterior landscaping can enhance a home’s value. Keep your yard well maintained and strategically place flowers and shrubs. Installing or replacing a fence along your property line will also be a great attraction to potential buyers, especially if they have children and pets.

10. Adding a new deck is a great asset to the exterior look of your home. These can be made from a variety of wood and sealed to preserve the natural appearance.

Adding value to your home can be as simple and as affordable as you want it to be. Most improvements can be accomplished a little at a time, all depending on your time and budget. Smaller improvements can be made by simply adding potted plants along the stairs up to your freshly painted front door or by adding a small table or work of art in your foyer.

A visit to the home improvement store or looking through magazines can spark creativity when remodeling your home. Even if you have no idea where to start, one spark can lead to another and another,and then, before you know it, you have created a beautiful home that you may never want to leave!

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TITLE FIRST CAN ASSIST YOU IN PROMOTING YOUR BUSINESS WITH OUR FULL LINE OF MARKETING SOLUTIONS.

As a full-service title company, Title First believes in providing value-added services. Whether you’re a Realtor, lender, builder, law firm, buyer or seller, our helpful resources help you meet your goals.

Net-to-Seller:  This convenient tool helps you estimate your clients’ profit and presents it in a professional format that you can share.  Closing costs are calculated by adding up all various fees and charges a home seller pays when selling their home. For example, title insurance, home warranty, commissions, transfer tax, mortgage balance, prorated property taxes, mortgage balance and will also run various scenarios.

Full-Color Postcards, Imagery is powerful:  Stop working so hard. Title First has teamed up with PostcardBuilder.com to help you design, print, and mail your full-color, glossy, postcards. Choose from a variety of templates. Studies show that 56% of customers find print marketing to be the most trustworthy and are one of the best ways of exposure of your property and your business.

Property Profiles:  For your next listing, make a good impression on clients and prospective buyers with a bound presentation of property information.  Include some local market data that shows historic trends, how quickly homes are selling, or anything else that would be useful for the homeowner to understand how you will arrive at a price for their home. Explain  how the sales process works and how you will market their home in this presentation.

TitleFirstAgent Application:  Provide a higher level of service to your clients with a tool that enables you to give quick, easy estimates to any real estate financial questions. The app features net sheets, quick estimates, closing costs, prorated taxes and much more.  Watch the demo, here.

* Only available for Central Ohio

Listing Flyers:  Email us your MLS link, logo, and personal photo, and we will create a professional full-color info sheet for your listing.  This flyer, can help to sell your client’s home even when you aren’t there. Potential buyers will carry the flyer and all the information back to their home.

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Short Sale, Foreclosure and the Title to a Property

The most basic part of buying a new home is dealing with potential problems that may have been created by its previous owners. Short sales, foreclosures, bankruptcies and financial situations have added another element to the entire closing process that makes title insurance essential.  The title to a house is the document that proves that a person owns it.  Without that proof, the house can’t be sold or bought.

Title First Agency experts oversee and perform thousands of closings each year nationwide and ensure that all of the details of the title transfer and closing are in proper order. Unfortunately, at this time there are plenty of situations that could make problems with a title and complicate the process of buying the affected houses.  No matter why the house is being sold, its title problems must be cleaned up so they are not inherited by the buyer.

Short Sale: A short sale is when the lender agrees to let you sell your home for less than the outstanding mortgage debt. The proceeds from the sale pay off a portion of the mortgage balance and the lender releases the lien on the property. A title from a short sale is not always free and clear. A good Realtor will make sure to get a preliminary title search performed to determine the extent of outstanding legal obligations. If a home is bought without a clear title, the buyer could be responsible for the mechanic’s lien, which is a legal claim placed on a home to settle unpaid or partially paid contractor work,  any unsettled contractor liens, property-tax liens, IRS liens, homeowners’ association special assessment liens or even a second mortgage loan.

Foreclosure: Homeowners that can’t afford their home may decide to relinquish ownership and give the house to the bank that holds the mortgage. Mortgage foreclosures can cause a lot of issues with the chain of title. Sometimes, even though the owner loses their home, they may not actually lose the title to the property.  The property may have plenty of repair problems since financially distressed owners often let their properties fall into disrepair. From leaky basements, unpaid taxes,  to bills from homeowners’ associations to quarreling lenders – it can take some time to sort out who is owed what, how they will be paid, and when the title will finally be cleared. All buyers of foreclosed property need to protect themselves by making sure the title search shows that any previous mortgage was satisfied, canceled or otherwise released to avoid any future title problem.

The Bottom Line: There are dozens of potential barricades to clear title.  Buying or selling a home has become a complex transaction and you need a trusted title search company to guide you through the process. The experts at Title First oversee and perform thousands of closings each year. When using Title First, you can sign confidently on the dotted line knowing that all details of your title transfer and closing are in proper order. We are here to answer any questions you may have about buying or selling a home, and our team will guide you through the entire process.

 

 

 

 

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